Peerless GT
Gary becomes a Jaeger master by sorting his dials
I should be used to surprises when working on the Peerless, but somehow it never ceases to amaze me with its wit and originality. Last month I mentioned the parts order from David Manners that included new speedometer and rev counter cables, both of which I considered too long. Having spoken with Nigel Cluley, PWOR Registrar and member of Team 710, I decided to give them another chance, as it seems there is more than one way members have fitted them.
I fitted the rev counter cable first, giving it a wide arc around the area on the bulkhead reserved for the heater box assembly and so into the dash binnacle. Similarly, I took a wide arc with the speedo cable into the engine bay under the carbs before sweeping smoothly back tight against the driver’s side inner wing into the dash. While connecting the cable to the rev counter, I checked the oil gauge I repaired recently by cranking the engine over without firing it up. Sure enough, 50psi soon registered on the gauge. I then checked the run the of cable again in the engine bay, only to realise the outer cable had twisted itself almost in knots. Initially, I thought I’d snagged it by creating too sharp a curve.
When I removed it at the distributor end, I noticed the inner cable had sheared off. I knew the distributor output rotated because I’d watched it spinning previously with the engine running. I tried to rotate the rev counter by inserting a small screwdriver into the cable drive intake, but it wouldn’t. I could only conclude that it had seized in storage, as had the oil gauge needle mechanism. Then it occurred to me that the speedo might have suffered the same fate so it was checked with a screwdriver, and sure enough it was seized. At least I’d saved that cable.
You spin me round
Out came both gauges and my day slipped away from the intended sorting of the brake and clutch hydraulics. With the speedo dismantled on the bench, all looked unbroken internally, so I sprayed penetrating fluid into the cable drive intake and tried again with the screwdriver. It rotated very sluggishly, confirming that the lubricant had dried up in storage. I applied a heat gun and more fluid and kept rotating it until it was moving freely. Then, with a two-inch piece of inner cable cut from the opposite end and spun anti-clockwise in a hand drill, the speedo was working again.
The rev counter was also stripped down, but it was seized solid. I had to dig deeper into uncharted territory. That meant removing all
those tiny screws you don’t want to remove because you know you’ll never be able to reassemble it. At the point where the last two main moving parts that refused to move were fully exposed, I felt the calm at the eye of the storm. With more doses of penetrating fluid and rotation, I separated them and found the source of the seizure. Years of inactivity had caked the grease dry. I cleaned up the rotating parts and regreased them lightly with Corrosion Block.
Once back together, they were rotated at high speed using the drill and hit 3000rpm, the drill’s maximum. Assuming they work now, I’ve saved hundreds of pounds and weeks of delay having them reconditioned. Not such a bad day after all.
Plans in a fluid state
I did manage to sort a few smaller details and make a start bleeding the brakes before I ran out of Automec silicone brake fluid. I haven’t used anything else in my classics for over 20 years, so I was happy to wait. I fitted the Goodridge clutch flexi hose and bled that system first before realising there wasn’t enough for the brakes, though I managed to fit the rear Goodridge brake flexi hose and bleed the rear cylinders.
A word to the wise guys
Not content with that progress, I finished the overdrive wiring by fitting new connectors, heatshrink wrapping to all terminals and a good earthing point for the gearlever overdrive switch. The overdrive solenoid now kicks in immediately with a clunk when activated in the top three gears.
Another chunk of progress, even if I’ve been reminded that dormant parts will seize or fail when least expected. What’s that, you say? Someone thinks it’s a great idea to make even more classics MOT exempt? There’s a gift-horse mouth that needs scrutiny with a microscope.